EPA Recognizes Sears Holdings With 2013 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year -
Sustained Excellence Award
Sears Holdings earns award for protecting the environment through superior
energy efficiency
PR Newswire
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., March 18, 2013
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., March 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized Sears Holdings (NASDAQ: SHLD)with a
2013 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Award for its
continued leadership in protecting the environment through superior energy
efficiency. This year, Sears Holdings is being awarded for both its role as a
retailer of ENERGY STAR certified products and for energy management in its
stores. Sears Holdings' accomplishments will be recognized at an awards
ceremony in Washington, D.C., on March 26, 2013.
Sears Holdings, an ENERGY STAR partner since 1998, will be honored for its
long-term commitment to energy efficiency. Sears Holdings demonstrates
impressive commitment to providing a wide-array of ENERGY STAR products and
services, along with superior energy management across its building portfolio,
coupled with enhanced associate and consumer education to drive awareness and
adoption of energy efficiency and climate protection. The company's related
accomplishments last year include:
oEnergy Savings: In 2012, Sears Holdings' total weather normalized source
energy usage decreased by 2,872,416,518 kbtu, a reduction of more than 7
percent over last year. Additionally, the company reduced average weather
normalized source energy intensity to 133.9 kbtu/sqft, a 7.1 percent
reduction over 2011. This reduction of EUI was made possible by energy
savings across all of the Sears Holdings formats. Furthermore, the company
reduced electricity usage by nearly 220,000,000 kWh, a 6.6 percent savings
over the previous year.
oProduct Selection: The introduction of the Kenmore Connect platform was
among interesting developments at Sears in 2012. Sears looks forward to
the continued expansion of the platform in the future and the potential
for integration with the ENERGY STAR program and overall energy
efficiency. Additionally, Sears also experienced growth across its
portfolio in the Most Efficient program and now offers 48 clothes washers
and 11 refrigerators. This is a differentiation that is important in
continuing to be a market leader with ENERGY STAR.
oMarketing: In 2012, the company continued to communicate its environmental
leadership to its SHOP YOUR WAY Members and customers through its
dedicated Sears and Kmart green websites (Sears.com/green and
Kmart.com/green). Social media has also remained a feature of Sears
strategy this year it utilized company Facebook, Twitter and team specific
Twitter channels to deliver its sustainability message.
oPartnership: Sears' strong relationship with local utilities
differentiates the company from other retailers. Through Sears Green
Leadership team, it is able to capitalize on these relationships to drive
traffic to its stores and generate awareness for the ENERGY STAR brand.
"EPA is recognizing Sears Holdings for earning EPA's highest ENERGY STAR award
- the 2013 Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Award," said Bob
Perciasepe, Acting Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Sears
Holdings leads the field with its commitment to energy efficiency and
demonstrates how all Americans can save energy, save money, and create a
healthier environment."
Across the U.S., top companies and organizations are leading the way toward a
more energy-efficient future through their participation in ENERGY STAR.
Over the last 20 years, with help from ENERGY STAR, American families and
businesses have saved more than $230 billion on utility bills and prevented
more than 1.8 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
"The ENERGY STAR Sustained Excellence Award is a validation that we are
focused on the right things — our Members and customers, and making their
lives better," said Ron Boire, Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing
Officer and President of Sears Full Line Stores and Kmart Formats. "One of our
greatest priorities is to provide our shoppers with meaningful savings. ENERGY
STAR products, particularly appliances, deliver financial benefits over a
product's lifetime. We are very proud to be recognized for our longstanding
commitment to supporting and promoting ENERGY STAR. We will continue the
tradition of celebrating our associates', our Members and customers'
conservation efforts."
Sears' commitment to ENERGY STAR qualified products provides its SHOP YOUR WAY
Members with the most rewarding and cost-effective solutions that they can
purchase across all integrated retail channels: store, online, phone and
home. Furthermore, Sears is actively pursuing strategic partnerships with
other prominent ENERGY STAR partners to offer exclusive product promotions for
its SHOP YOUR WAY Members.
The 2013 Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Awards are given to a
select group of organizations that have exhibited outstanding leadership year
after year. These winners have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by setting and
achieving aggressive goals, and employing innovative energy efficiency
approaches. These awards recognize ongoing leadership across the ENERGY STAR
program, including energy-efficient products, services, new homes, and
buildings in the commercial, industrial, and public sectors. Award winners are
selected from the nearly 20,000 organizations that participate in the ENERGY
STAR program.
About Sears Holdings Corporation
Sears Holdings Corporation is a leading integrated retailer with over 2,600
full-line and specialty retail stores in the United States and Canada and the
home of SHOP YOUR WAY, a social shopping experience where members have the
ability to earn points and receive benefits across a wide variety of physical
and digital formats through ShopYourWay.com. Sears Holdings is the leading
home appliance retailer as well as a leader in tools, lawn and garden, fitness
equipment and automotive repair and maintenance. Key proprietary brands
include Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard, with a broad apparel offering,
including such well-known labels as Lands' End, the Kardashian Kollection,
Jaclyn Smith and Joe Boxer, as well as Sofia by Sofia Vergara and The Country
Living Home Collection. We are the nation's largest provider of home services,
with more than 15 million service and installation calls made annually and
have a long-established commitment to those who serve in the military through
initiatives like theHeroes at Homeprogram. We have been named the 2011
Mobile Retailer of the Year, Recipient of the 2012 ENERGY STAR® "Corporate
Commitment Award" for Product Retailing and Energy Management and one of the
Top 20 Best Places to Work for Recent Grads. Sears Holdings Corporation
operates through its subsidiaries, includingSears, Roebuck and Co.
andKmartCorporation. For more information, visit Sears Holdings' website at
www.searsholdings.com. Twitter: @searsholdings|| Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/SHCCareers
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992
as a voluntary market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
through increased energy efficiency. Today, ENERGY STAR offers businesses and
consumers energy-efficient solutions to save energy, money, and help protect
the environment for future generations. Nearly 20,000 organizations are ENERGY
STAR partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes,
and buildings. For more information about ENERGY STAR, visit
www.energystar.gov or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Sears Holdings Public Relations
(847) 286-8371
Kristinn Vazquez
ENERGY STAR
(202) 343-9062
Vazquez.Kristinn@epa.gov
SOURCE Sears Holdings Corporation
Website: http://www.searsholdings.com
Website: http://www.energystar.gov